Mount Aspiring // From Rainforest to Snow Capped Summit

Mount Aspiring National park on the South Island of New Zealand is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. Years ago I did a 3 week bike tour on the North and South islands of New Zealand, and I can’t believe I never ventured into this place. I’m making up for lost opportunities now. Climbing Mount Aspiring is a great way to sample all of the natural wonders the this National Park contains. The first 13 miles to the base of the Bevan Col is filled with lush vegetation, rainforests, azure blue rivers, waterfalls and majestic mountain views. After scrambling up the Col you’re treated to some amazing alpine views of rugged, glacier covered peaks. It’s the perfect birthday present to give myself. Even sleeping in a crowded Colin Todd hut that would give a fire martial nightmares, wasn’t enough to dampen my desire to aspire. In total the first day hiking up to Colin Todd was 16.5 miles and almost 7k feet of climbing. The next day I climbed the NW ridge of Aspiring. I had read a lot of Beta on the different routes, but when I saw the mountain I decided to stick to the ridge, or slightly lookers left all the way to the ramp. The other groups that started that morning went up towards the Kangaroo patch (you can see them in the clip at the end when the MA logo appears). In the end, summit day had around 6K feet of climbing, 11K of descent and nearly 22 miles from the hut to the summit and then to the car. There was a puke fest for the last 5 miles but I felt too miserable to document it. Even with the chunk spewing it was one of my favorite days in the mountains.